The Protector
by The Young and the Restless
Summary: Tyreese never thought he would become the protector of five young children - one of them still in diapers and unable to defend herself - but here he was fighting off walkers to keep the children safe.


_This is a story brought to you by the Walking Dead Kinkmeme on LiveJournal._

_The request: "I can't be the only one who just about died during the scenes of this man taking care of Lizzie, Mika, and Judith; and then again when he finally forced himself to kill in order to save the baby. All I keep thinking is what a great dad Tyreese would make. So I want a situation in which he continues to fill the roll of father figure to one of the girls long-term. I'm not particular about the details. Any pairing or lack thereof is fine. It could be that Carol and he never find the group and he helps raise Judith. Or maybe Carol never found him and he continues trying to keep all of them alive - Does Lizzie still kill Mika? Would Tyreese be able to kill Lizzie? What would it do to him? Or maybe without the extra set of watchful eyes that Carol provided Lizzie is bit and dies before hurting anyone? In which case how does the loss of her sister affect Mika?"_

* * *

His breath was quick and deep as he stood, hammer raised and ready to strike. Blood splattered his clothes and skin, ran down his arms causing them to itch. Brain matter plastered on the front of his shirt and over his shoes. The half dozen walkers lay around him in puddles of their own blood and guts. Eyes wide and ears listening, the only sounds he could hear were his own breathing and beating heart - and the hushed cries of Judith.

Tyreese turned around, lowering his hammer in the process. It was his only weapon, the only one he had when running for the safety of the woods after the prison had been attacked. It didn't matter to him, it felt better using the hammer than a gun, he wasn't as good with them as his sister. He frowned at the thought of Sasha and the rest of his lost friends. He wasn't sure whether they were dead or not but he didn't want to dwell on that. There were more important things at the moment.

Like finding shelter and food for the five pairs of eyes staring at him from above. When they had heard the walkers coming their way, Tyreese had helped the children up a tree with low hanging branches, making sure they were sturdy enough to hold their weight. Once the four oldest had scrambled up, he had handed off the baby to one of them, leaving the meager diaper bag on the ground below. It wasn't like there was anything the walkers liked inside.

Hooking the hammer back into his belt as he stepped over the bodies, Tyreese made his way to the tree just as Lizzie jumped off the lowest branch and landed on the ground. He didn't say anything as he helped Luke and Molly down before taking Judith from Mika so she could climb down with the help of her sister. Molly picked up the diaper bag and they were off once again. They had already spent one day out in the woods, Tyreese did not want to make it a habit.

He was not too sure how he was going to make this work, being the only adult looking out for five young children while at the same time being sure none of them were eaten by walkers or ran off in fear - he had seen Luke and Molly run before he had been shot back at the prison. He needed them to be able to defend themselves in the case he was unable to do so. He knew he needed to teach them to use knives - Lizzie and Mika each had a gun, he knew, but they only had so many bullets left. They needed to save them.

It wasn't long before the sun started setting for the second night with them camping in the woods with nothing but each other to keep themselves warm and safe. They needed walls between them and the danger. Something to keep out the chills of the coming winter. Tyreese kept a lookout as the children huddled together into a ball to sleep, Mika holding Judith carefully so not to smother the little girl. Molly and Mika had found them some grapes earlier so they were all full of them with some left over for tomorrow but Tyreese knew it wasn't enough - they were also low on baby formula for Judith.

This was the time he wished they - as in the council at the prison - had given clear instructions on a meeting place if the prison was ever overrun. They had a clear escape plan - get on the bus and get the hell out of dodge - but there had been no clear plan on where they'd all meet in case of separation. He was sure most people had gotten out, he had seen many on the bus as it had pulled away, but he was sure others had been left behind as well. It was only a matter of which direction they went and if he and the children would run into them.

A rustling in the leaves had him at attention, hammer gripped tightly in hand and turning around in seconds to strike whatever was sneaking up on him. Only to freeze when he recognizes the curly blond hair of Luke as the kid walks up to him. The kid needs to use the restroom so Tyreese points him towards a tree with bushes around it. Close enough for Tyreese to keep an eye - or ear - on him while still watching the girls - but far enough away for some resemblance of privacy. It's not long before Luke is back with the girls, curling against Lizzie's back.

Tyreese keeps his eyes on the children for a minute more or so before returning to his watch over them. Eyes and ears open for any movement and sound. A second night with no sleep was rough but necessary, he knew this. He just hoped he would be able to find something for them tomorrow. Something with four strong walls to help protect them against whatever tomorrow and the next day and the next brought them. Or maybe someone from the prison, someone to help take the responsibility of five young children.

It wasn't like he wasn't up for the job, Tyreese knew he could protect these kids. He was just unsure how long he could keep up that protection. He was sure Lizzie would be able to survive by herself if the need came down to it but the others he knew could not - especially the baby. They still needed him and he needed rest to be able to function right and actually protect them. Yeah, they needed some sort of shelter, the sooner the better.

It was early afternoon the following day when they had found the nice little house in the middle of the woods - Mika had spotted it while they hunted for more food. Fenced in and all the pecans and peaches they could eat. There had been one walker they had to put down but other than that, the place seemed secure. Safe. They had found a little piece of heaven once again in a world gone to hell. For the time being, he knew he'd be able to keep the children safe and keep himself alert and ready for anything to came their way. And maybe, just maybe, they could find others from the prison that had gotten away. They could all start over again.

For now though it was just him and the children.


End file.
